


The More Things Change...

by Arbryna



Series: A Different Kind of Normal [1]
Category: Lost Girl
Genre: F/F, F/M, Multi, Polyamory
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-04-29
Updated: 2013-04-29
Packaged: 2017-12-09 21:40:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,624
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/778266
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arbryna/pseuds/Arbryna
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Lauren's been on the run since fleeing Isaac's compound, unable to find a place with either human or fae. Now after nearly a year, she returns to the Dal to find things rather different than she left them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The More Things Change...

The first time Lauren walked into the Dal Riata, she’d had one of the Ash’s guards at either elbow—for her protection, of course, but also to make sure she didn’t try to run. One of the Light Fae elders had stopped in for a drink and mysteriously passed out, and no one had wanted to go near him for fear of his defensive spikes popping out and maiming someone. Everyone in the bar had stared at her with varying degrees of disdain, some bordering on downright hatred, but Trick had managed to keep things civil while she treated the man. It had been nerve-wracking, to say the least. 

It wasn’t nearly as terrifying as standing here now. 

It’s been nearly a year since Lauren fled Isaac’s compound, driven by fear and a yearning for freedom that had been building in her for years. Nearly a year since she saw Bo, since she took what was left of Bo’s faith in her and crushed it to save her life, to save all of their lives. She doesn’t know what she expects coming back here now; she only knows that she can’t put it off forever. 

Maybe she can put it off for a little while longer, though. She lurks in the entryway a bit longer than necessary, peering around the door frame to get an idea of what she’s walking into. Gather her nerve.

Bo is here, of course. She’s at the bar with Tamsin, sipping whisky and talking in a voice too low for Lauren to hear. They’re both smiling, and there’s a surprising ease in the way they interact with each other; Tamsin leans in with a smirk on her face, and Bo knocks her knee against Tamsin’s as she laughs at whatever Tamsin has just said, her hand coming to rest idly on Tamsin’s shoulder. 

Then Tamsin slides a hand casually onto Bo’s thigh, too far up to be friendly. A pang of jealousy strikes Lauren in the gut, and she chides herself for it; she couldn’t expect Bo to be waiting for her, especially not with the way they left things. Swallowing hard, she watches as Bo’s head turns to follow Tamsin’s gaze to the pool table, where a handsome dark-haired man is blatantly checking Bo out. 

That’s when things start to get…weird. Bo turns back to the bar, and Tamsin waggles her eyebrows as she nudges Bo with her elbow. Bo turns her eyes skyward for a second with a familiar look of exasperated affection on her face, then slides off of her stool and tosses back the rest of her drink. Before she walks away, Bo sways in close to Tamsin, sliding her hand over a jean-clad thigh and pressing her lips to the skin right under Tamsin’s jaw. 

When Bo draws back and departs, Tamsin gives her ass a parting slap and calls after her, “Go get him, Hotpants.” She turns back to the bar, then, and the smile that steals over the blonde’s face as she brings her own drink to her lips is so genuine and giddy that Lauren has to blink a couple of times to make sure her eyes are still working properly. 

Bo is halfway to her destination when Dyson appears in the doorway leading down to Trick’s den. She greets him happily, winding her arms around his neck and smiling in that intimate way that never fails to make hearts flutter and pulses race. Lauren’s brow furrows as Bo leans up to peck him on the lips, then murmurs something into his ear. He pulls back with a smile and squeezes Bo’s hips.

“Have fun,” Dyson says. His smile tightens as he watches Bo brush past him; whatever is going on here, he’s clearly not completely comfortable with it. He makes his way over to the stool Bo recently vacated, and Tamsin gives him a consoling pat on the shoulder as she nods at the bartender. 

Lauren is stunned. She’s not sure how to process the data she’s just been presented with; Bo appears to be involved with Tamsin _and_ Dyson, and she’s leaving them both behind to flirt with a handsome stranger by the pool tables—and everyone is…okay with it? 

Her surprise and confusion are so profound that she doesn’t realize until too late that Bo is leading her new plaything toward the very doorway she’s hiding behind. Panic floods her chest, and she can’t get her thoughts together fast enough to hide or leave before Bo spots her. 

The flirtatious smile on Bo’s lips melts into open-mouthed shock. “Lauren?”

“Um, hey,” Lauren replies, giving a half-hearted sort of wave. “How’s it going?” 

Bo flounders for a moment, mouth opening and closing as she searches for words. “Good,” she finally manages. “Really good,” she corrects with a smile. Belatedly, she remembers her companion. “Um, this is…” she trails off awkwardly, apparently realizing she forgot to get his name.

“Gavin,” he supplies, looking a bit confused at the tension suffusing the air. “And you’re…Lauren?”

“That’s me,” Lauren replies, nodding uneasily. 

It’s comforting, in a way, how it takes Bo a few moments of uncomfortable silence before she figures out what to say or do. When it hits her, she turns to face her date, resting her palm against his chest. “Gavin,” she says sweetly, her voice tinged with a hint of regret. “I think I’m gonna have to take a rain check tonight.” Reaching into his pocket, she pulls out his phone, quickly tapping her number into it. “But you should definitely call me sometime,” she finishes in a low, sultry voice as she slips the phone back into his pocket. 

He’s disappointed—and who wouldn’t be?—but he takes it gracefully, smiling as he brings Bo’s hand up to his lips. “Count on it,” he promises before brushing past Lauren and exiting the bar.

“I-you didn’t have to—” Lauren fumbles, feeling awkward and guilty. 

“Don’t be silly,” Bo interjects, reaching out to squeeze Lauren’s bicep. “I haven’t seen you in forever. Come sit with me.” 

Then Bo smiles, and there’s not really any hope of resisting. For a second, Lauren is afraid that she means at the bar, with Dyson and Tamsin, and she is definitely not ready for that right now. Instead, Bo heads toward the lounge, catching the eyes of her—lovers?—on the way. Both detectives look concerned, but Bo shoots them a reassuring smile and nod and they turn back to talking to each other. 

Bo sinks down onto the couch in the lounge, and Lauren follows suit in silence. It’s hard to know what to say, where to start. 

“So…” Lauren finally attempts, staring down at the floor. 

“So, wow!” Bo says, letting out a deep breath. “It’s…been a long time.”

“Almost a year,” Lauren confirms with a nod, her hands fidgeting restlessly in her lap.

“Well, you look good,” Bo says with a warm smile.

“Not as good as you,” Lauren comments, a smile fighting its way onto her own lips. “You’re practically glowing.” 

“Well, I am pretty well-fed these days.” Bo smiles almost shyly, color rising in her cheeks. Lauren’s not sure what to say about that, so before things can get more awkward, Bo reaches over to give Lauren’s hands a quick squeeze. “So what about you? Where have you been? What have you been up to?”

Lauren sighs. “Running, mostly,” she admits. “Hiding. Isaac’s organization pretty much fell apart without him—which was a good thing,” she rushes to add, not wanting to leave any uncertainty about where she stands. “But I couldn’t expect the fae to welcome me back with open arms after everything. And I didn’t want to go back to being a glorified prisoner.” 

Bo nods. “I can understand that.” 

Guilt wells up in Lauren’s chest; it’s taken her almost a year to do it, but she owes Bo a serious apology. “Bo, what I said to you—”

“It’s okay, Lauren,” Bo says, putting a hand on Lauren’s arm to cut her off. “Dyson told me what you did. I won’t say it didn’t take me a while, but…I get it now. You did what you had to do.”

“I didn’t need to be so cruel.” Lauren shakes her head, almost wanting to laugh; only she would try to convince Bo to be mad at her. 

Bo inhales deeply, looks down at her hands before meeting Lauren’s gaze again. “It hurt,” she admits. “I won’t lie about that. But there was a _lot_ at stake. You had to make him believe you were on his side. I get that.” She reaches across again, this time holding onto Lauren’s hands. 

Lauren just stares for a moment in disbelief before a smile tugs at the corners of her mouth. She’ll never quite believe that someone like Bo can exist; she almost wants to cry at the love swelling in her chest. “Don’t you ever get tired of forgiving me?”

Smiling, Bo leans in closer. “Never,” she retorts. She sits back then, and the silence that falls over them this time is a little more comfortable. “You were wrong, though.”

“About?” Lauren asks with a small frown. 

“I could love you both,” Bo says gently. She bites her lip and glances sideways, and Lauren can tell she’s trying not to look back at the bar. “That took some time, too, but I finally realized that I’m just not cut out for monogamy—with humans _or_ fae.” 

“I, uh, I noticed,” Lauren says, clearing her throat awkwardly. “I’m surprised you got Dyson to go for it.” 

“Dyson is…a work in progress,” Bo admits with a grin. “But I told him that if he wanted me at all, he had to learn how to share. Once he realized I was serious, it wasn’t that hard of a choice.” 

“No, I don’t suppose it would be,” Lauren muses softly, falling silent as her eyes connect with Bo’s. Even after a year, the butterflies in her stomach come roaring back to life as though they never left. It becomes too much, too intense, and she clears her throat again, glancing away. “And, uh…and Tamsin,” she says, her surprise evident in her voice. 

“She’s…not who I thought she was.” If possible, the smile on Bo’s face grows brighter. “She’s definitely a challenge, but it’s been worth it.” This time she does glance back, her eyes lingering at the bar as Tamsin laughs and smacks Dyson on the arm. “Besides, I’m a succubus. My life was never going to be boring or easy,” Bo finishes, turning back to Lauren with a shrug.

“That’s for sure,” Lauren agrees with a chuckle. 

“So, enough about me.” Bo squeezes Lauren’s hands gently before leaning back against the corner of the couch. “What about you? What are you doing back here in fae territory?” 

An easier topic; Lauren breathes an inward sigh of relief. “I’ve been in contact with the new Morrigan and Ash,” she explains. “I proposed the idea of a fae clinic, unaffiliated with either side. Neutral ground, where any fae can come for treatment.”

“Wow,” Bo says, impressed. “And they went for that?” 

“I made a convincing argument,” Lauren replies with a shrug. Pride swells in her chest; it really is quite an accomplishment. “It’s still in the planning stages, but eventually I’ll provide medical training to fae from both sides. With enough staff, I’ll be able to pursue my own research as well—with willing fae donors of course.”

Bo’s expression turns serious. “Lauren, you’re not…”

“Making people fae?” Lauren shakes her head, smiling reassuringly. “No. That’s a door best left closed. I mean, who knows what would have become of Isaac if he’d lived?” It’s a disturbing thought. Lauren has admittedly been curious, but not enough to play with forces like that again. “But there are other avenues of research that could be beneficial to both fae and humans. I never got to tell you, but I made a huge breakthrough with heart disease when I was working with Isaac.”

“That’s great.” Bo grins, reaching over to squeeze Lauren’s knee. “It’ll be good to have you around again—and on your own terms.” 

Their eyes meet again, and Bo’s hand lingers on her leg, and Lauren feels the weight of everything that’s ever been between them pressing in around her. She’s trying not to think about it, trying not to hope that there’s still room for her somewhere in the chaos of Bo’s life. Heck, she’s not even sure how this whole thing works, or if she could handle being in a relationship with Bo if she’s not the only one. But then, Bo made a good point—if the choice was sharing Bo or not having her at all, it wasn’t really all that difficult.

If Bo even still wants her. Lauren draws a deep breath, pushing the fear out of her mind. “Anyway, I should go,” she says, pushing herself to her feet. “Maybe you can still salvage your night.”

“Lauren.” Bo catches her wrist before she can get very far, and Lauren glances back. “There’s nothing to ‘salvage’. I’m really glad you came back.” The smile on her lips is entirely genuine, and Lauren has no choice but to believe her. After everything Lauren has done, everything that’s happened between them, Bo is still happy to see her. “Why don’t you come over to the bar? We can all have some drinks, catch up. Dyson would love to see you.” 

“I don’t know…” Lauren trails off, glancing nervously at the bar. “That might be…weird.” 

Bo rolls her eyes. “Come on,” she says, using Lauren’s hand to pull herself up. “I’ll be on my best behavior—no random makeouts, I promise.” 

Lauren shakes her head, laughing at her lack of willpower. “I guess I could have one drink,” she concedes. It’s always been hard to say no to Bo.

When he sees them approaching the bar, Dyson slides off of his stool, opening his arms wide for Lauren to walk into them. “It’s good to have you back,” he says sincerely. Whatever anger he’d held toward her for falling in with Isaac seems to be a thing of the past—though saving his life probably helped. 

“It’s good to be back,” Lauren says, surprised to find just how much she means it. 

Tamsin isn’t as easy to crack; she nods in Lauren’s direction, a tense smile on her lips. “Doc.”

“Tamsin,” Lauren responds with a polite nod. They hadn’t exactly parted on the best terms; Lauren supposes she should be happy Tamsin isn’t trying to repay her for that slap, even if the valkyrie had deserved it.

“Here,” Dyson says, pulling out a stool for Lauren as Bo slides back onto her seat next to Tamsin. He’s offered her the seat closer to Bo, and Lauren smiles as she pulls herself up onto it. Ever the gentleman. He catches the bartender’s attention. “Can we get two Scottish whiskies, a vodka on the rocks, and—” he turns to Lauren, thinking for a second. “—white wine?”

“Yep,” Lauren confirms with a nod, touched that he remembered. 

“So,” Bo says, squeezing Lauren’s knee. “Tell us all about this clinic.”

Dyson settles onto the stool on the other side of Lauren, his presence warm and solid next to her. Tamsin’s fingers play idly with the ends of Bo’s hair, and Bo smiles reassuringly at Lauren. This should be weird; it should be awkward, and uncomfortable, and tense. In a way, it’s all of those things—but Lauren can’t help feeling like she’s been on this long journey, and now, here in this bar, she’s finally coming home.

_end._


End file.
